Author Archives: Gregory Zeller

Gregory is a 25-year veteran of the newspaper business, having edited and reported for dailies and weeklies across New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. The former New Jersey Press Association Journalist of the Year and New York Press Association Writer of the Year has won numerous writing and design awards from the NYPA, the NJPA and the Society of Professional Journalists.

October 21, 2010Comments Off on Entrepreneur trades the pits for paradise

Glenn Rudolfsky lost 90 percent of his income, and he couldn’t be happier. The futures trader from Merrick made a killing on the New York Mercantile Exchange in the 1980s and ‘90s, buying and selling futures contracts on crude oil, ...

It doesn’t matter if you plotted a criminal tax evasion scheme or innocently forgot to report that $1,500 you won in Saratoga, the tax audit is one of the great equalizers. “No matter who you are,” said Jerry Sloane “when ...

Pay no attention to those 189 additional auditors behind the curtain. That’s the word from the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, which dismisses suggestions from regional accounting experts that tax collectors are gearing up for an auditing ...

At last, a promotion that brings retail management full circle: The grand-opening-going-out-of-business sale. It’s not a frightening consequence of the recession – new businesses shuttering before the paint dries – but a solid plan for thousands of landlords and entrepreneurs. ...

Not all economic engines are sputtering. NAPA has revved its way through an impressive growth spurt in recent years. The National Auto Parts Association now has 6,100 stores and is opening dozens of new locations annually – including several on ...

It’s not easy being a diaper. Crammed eight deep in a diaper bag with the sippy cups and pretzel crumbs, they’re doomed to baste in peanut butter or soak in sunblock. Enter DiaperBuds, a hygienic innovation that shrink-wraps individual, high-quality ...

Renovations and demolitions can unearth a virtual treasure trove of equipment, construction components and finished materials – but depending on specific circumstances, as many spoils may be scrapped as saved. When commercial property changes hands, renovation work (if not total ...

The venture capitalist with the golden touch may have passed on building a Long Island-based labor-resource platform, but the industrious Glen Cove couple is all in. Co-founders Brooke and Lynn Dixon are doing what VC magnet Jeff Leventhal failed to ...

September 23, 2010Comments Off on Heating oil websites in fierce competition

Nine years later, oil’s well for CODFuel.com. What started as an online collection of classified advertisements for Long Island oil companies has become a hub for consumers craving lower heating costs. Since its 2001 launch, many competitors have risen, some ...

A new New York State Department of Labor webpage is helping New York’s youngest workers understand the rules of employment. With the recession, in some cases, requiring children as young as 14 to help support household budgets – and with ...